I thought about titling this post "Trouble with Women", but that sounds more appropriate for the Love & Dating forum...
The other day, a former coworker mentioned his interest in someone with whom we had worked at our prior employer. He went on to describe favorably certain of her physical attributes. That brought to mind an incident when I had first met her, which I related to him. She is an employee at the corporate division of our former employer. I almost never went to the corporate office, so I did not know her. Sometime last year, I spent a week or so up there to work on an IRS audit. After normal working hours on that first day, I went to her office to discuss the immediately prior IRS audit with her. She pulled a large binder off a bookshelf set it on her desk, stood behind her desk with her body slightly turned towards me such that it was apparent she wanted me to stand next to her and read it. Having little interest in the matter, I did not move from my spot on the opposite side of her desk. I could tell she was a little taken aback by this. (There were several professional reasons why I did not reciprocate interest that have nothing to do with her.)
Anyway, this got me thinking about how I relate to people. I recall working with a young, attractive woman. She had attended an regionally elite private university and then worked for a major firm in our industry. In other words, she had pedigree (professionally) and looks. The first time I reviewed her work and sent back revisions, it became apparent that no one had ever treated her that way before. I wasn't mean, rude, or anything of the sort; she just was unaccustomed to criticism.
Finally, a couple of days ago, I was at a sales presentation by a female salesperson. She wasn't bad. She pushed many of the right buttons, but I could see her doing that. So the pitch fell flat.
My point is that the more I learn about nonverbal conduct and personal interaction, the worse I get at it. Make sense?
